Fragile
by Beckon
Summary: She cursed their hesitation the moment it nearly cost her someone she swore to protect. Radiant Dawn.


**A/N: I felt like I had been neglecting Fire Emblem for awhile (then again, without my Wii, I haven't been able to get my fix of it unfortunately) so I tried to type out an idea I've had for awhile now. I only had mostly dialogue planned so hopefully there's a story somewhere in there.**

"They drive my patience. They don't know what they want even when it's right in front of them; that kind of hesitation can separate a man from living and dying. What part of that do they not understand?"

He sighed lightly at her words and yet couldn't help but to chuckle quietly at her rant. As much as she hated to listen to others speak, she had a lot to say herself in retaliation to their words. His attempts to calm her seemed futile but it wouldn't hurt to keep trying. Her constant moving back and forth across the large room was making him uneasy; her sharp emotions and harsh words were beginning to worry and trouble him as well.

"My Queen-"

"They're all the same. They're such hesitant creatures they aren't even aware of what danger they're putting themselves into. They always want to talk first and ask questions when the more productive route would be to take action and care about the consequences later."

"You know that doesn't always work."

She stopped just long enough to cement her hands to her hips as her long, white tail swished across the floor with enough force to send the nearest rug rolling aside. "Some consequences are worth taking when in the rush of battle; there has not been one consequence that I have regretted in any of my decisions to do so. Maybe others think of it as naïve but I will work off of previous experiences and see to it that I will continue with such train of thought."

She had already set her mind to it, there was no sense in trying to change it.

As reckless as her battle tactics seemed to some of the other Beorcs and Laguz, she had kept herself and her tribe alive by using those very tactics. She was of a race that all the world had thought was once extinct; the Wolves were thought to have been wiped out in the Great Flood but… she had kept them alive and had continued to do so to this day. She took those risks and appeared reckless in battle but that was because her strength and ferocity could back her up in bloodshed; she was not one for words but she was more than willing to introduce someone to her claws.

"Queen Nailah, not everyone is as strong or brave as you are." he started; careful to mind his words as he watched as her tense muscles seemed to relax slightly. "Nor do they seem to think as quickly on their feet as you do, but… you must accept their tactics if we are all to work together on this. This is not an easy situation for everyone- not everyone was looking forward to such a large scaled battle as you were. People are scared and they panic; they make mistakes and they hesitate because they don't know what's going to happen next. Yes, we could run out there and make the first kill or we could stand back and wait to see what happens next, no one knows if either decision will make a difference. I'm not asking you to change your ways, I just… I want you to see that we can't understand everyone."

A slight huff left her lips in a hurry. "Perhaps I may not, but you still do. You can understand their emotions and their thoughts. You know that they're scared and that most of them don't want to be here. Unfortunately, we don't have the option to run away with our tails tucked between our legs. I will not allow for their hesitation to hinder our full ability to win this war."

"Their hesitation won't hinder us; there are a lot of powerful fighters in this army and-"

"Because of their inability to make a decision in an appropriate time manner, I came too close to losing you today." she snapped.

"… Nailah."

"Damnit, I should be glad their healer was on site but their slow reactions nearly cost me your life. If they ever try to get in my way again, I will make a whole new enemy for them to face."

He felt like he could no longer hold a defensive position against her argument now. It was true though… in the battle earlier today, the army had hesitated in attacking the line of gold armor before them; it was a shocking and frightening scene but where they stopped, they enemy didn't. He remembered hearing the crack of arrows and looking up to see what looked like fifty of them beginning to rain down upon them. In their hesitation, they had failed to notice the archers who were more than prepared for the attack.

The memory of fresh blood running down from his shoulder continued to make him sick.

And the remembrance of the hot pain made him pale slightly.

He really should be glad the healer was just a few people away; his frail condition could barely withstand the sudden attack, as simple as it was.

And yet, some memories of the battle made him chuckle quietly.

"What's so funny?"

He looked up at the slight demand and watched as her single, uncovered eye narrowed in question. "Oh, it's nothing, My Queen." he mused before he carefully pushed himself out of the chair he had settled in for the few hours. "It's getting late and while I would prefer to stay up with you… I don't believe I would be in the power to stop myself from dozing off and I would much rather not disrespect you in such a manner."

"... Go ahead, you deserve a good night's rest." she nodded.

Stretching slightly, he spread his wings out just a few feet before he carefully tucked them back in place and started out of the room; it was an odd place to stop for the night but then again, when there was no other place of shelter aside from tents… everyone was more than willing to set up inside of an old, abandoned military house. But, as he suspected, he didn't quite make it out of the room as easily or as undisturbed as he had wished. Her fingers were quick to grab a hold of the loose material of his robes just before he stepped out of her reach. She kept her hold light, so not to rip the silk fabric but held tight enough to signal for him to stop for a moment longer.

"Some may think this is an overreaction, but had that arrow been just a few inches over, it would have killed you in one hit. And that alone would not make me a happy person." she started. "There are only four of you left and I intend to keep you alive regardless of what I'll have to go through for it. I will kill who I have to kill and I won't leave a second of hesitation in that decision. Rafiel, I have protected and cared for you far too long to allow something like this to happen…"

He smiled softly at her words and carefully turned more to face her before he leaned down slightly. Fingers carefully brushed aside her curled bangs as he lightly kissed her forehead. "It's okay to admit you were scared for my well being."

"I wasn't."

"Good night, Queen Nailah."


End file.
